1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a roller bearing arrangement, particularly for a rotary connection, comprising two rings arranged mutually concentrically and at least regionally inside each other, and comprising a gap between the rings, so that they are rotatable in opposite directions about an imaginary axis at the center of the rings and approximately perpendicular to the ring plane, wherein disposed in the region of a gap portion situated between the rings and surrounding the axis of rotation at an approximately constant radius is at least one raceway for at least one row of rollers, each having a rotationally symmetrical shape and rolling displacingly between the rings, each of which rollers, when the rings and the rollers are at the same temperature, has at least one point or region of contact with the raceway portions on each of the two rings, so that the radial and/or axial clearance between the two rings is equal to zero or at least is negligibly small.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In roller bearings, the two rings are connected to different system components that frequently are not connected in any other way. By the same token, since contact between the individual rollers and the two rings is limited to extremely small respective areas, the rings are largely thermally decoupled from each other. Depending on load conditions, therefore, one of the two rings can have a very different temperature from the other. This is accompanied by a difference in thermal expansion and, ultimately, a change in the cross section of the raceway for the rollers. If, due to higher temperature, the outer ring expands more than the inner one, a clearance forms between the rings which is unacceptable in many applications, for example in the case of rotating bearings or rotary connections in medical technology, especially in imaging scanners for medical technology. Conversely, if—again, due to higher temperature—the inner ring expands more than the outer one, then the pressure force exerted on the roller bearings increases, resulting in increased wear. Both are to be avoided in high-quality equipment.
Hence, the problem initiating the invention, in a roller bearing arrangement of the species cited, particularly for a rotary connection, is to ensure that the pressure force exerted on the rollers is always as constant as possible, i.e., does not vary over time.